


Love Coach

by Surrealx3



Category: Adventure Time
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, M/M, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-31
Updated: 2015-03-24
Packaged: 2018-01-10 16:22:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 11,909
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1161912
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Surrealx3/pseuds/Surrealx3
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bubba Gumball finds himself accommodating a vampire king in exchange for dating advice.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Just a Dream

**Author's Note:**

> Bonnie is Princess Bubblegum and Bubba is Prince Gumball.

    Marshall floated invisibly among the skyscrapers, reclining on air and strumming away at his bloody red guitar axe. It was late in the evening but the city was louder than ever. Consequently, anyone who did catch the sound of his guitar wrote it off as a vague humming. Nothing was louder than self involved humans. However, he didn’t sing. His voice caught too much attention, held too many people hypnotised too easily.

    Somehow, by some unseeable force, a stifled sob fell upon his ears. He looked down and saw, on the balcony on one of the high rise apartments, a splash of pink. Marshall Lee didn’t dive down out of compassion, he didn’t feel compassion anymore, but out of curiosity. To his surprise and amusement, the splash of pink turned out to be a teenage boy with strawberry pink hair that was gelled up to look like a dome piece. He was wearing faintly pink tank top and hot pink skinny jeans. His eyes, Marshall noted, was sky blue and were glazed over by tears.

Marshall watched with distaste as the boy pulled out a tissue out of his pocket and blew his nose.

“Dude, gross.”

The boy’s head snapped up, his sadness momentarily forgotten and replaced by alarm. “Who’s there?”

Grinning, Marshall reappeared behind the boy and whispered in his ear, “Just me.”

The boy let out a shocked, high-pitched squeal and slapped his ear, “What… What are you?”

“I’m the vampire king,” Marshall bowed mid-air with extra flourish, “You may address me as Marshall Lee. Who are you?”

The boy shook his head and went inside the house.

“Hello,” Marshall flew and stopped in front of him, “That was pretty rude.”

“You don’t exist,” the boy frowned, “I must be dreaming. Go away, shoo!”

Marshall froze, stunned. As he stood there, the boy took off his pants and replaced them with fluffy pink pajama pants. By time, Marshall unfreeze, the boy was getting into bed. “Are you kidding me?” he exclaimed, “Do you really think you could create something as hot as this in your head?”

The boy responded with a drowsy, “You’ll be gone in the morning, this is just a dream I came up with to distract myself.”

“You’re going to go to sleep in your dream?”

“Dreams consist of constant paradoxes. Going to sleep in a dream is perfectly logical by dream standards.”

Marshall groped for something to say but stopped when he caught sight of the tears working themselves out of the pink boy’s eyes. “Fine,” he relented, “Just go to sleep. I think I’ll catch some Zs too.”

The boy nodded.

“But since this is a dream, there shouldn’t be any reason why you can’t tell me your name.”

The boy opened one eyes to look at the vampire hovering over him. “It’s Bubba Gumball.”

Marshall laughed, “Bubba gum. That’s a ridiculous name.”

Bubba frowned from underneath his pink comforter, “You must be the most annoying apparition of my imagination I’ve ever met.”

“Trust me, Bub, I get worst. What are you planning to do tomorrow?”

Bubba shrugged, “Drown my sorrows.”

“Yeah, those, what are those all about?”

“What do you mean?”

“Why are you so sad?”

“You’re a part of my subconscious,” Bubba suddenly snapped, “You tell me.”

Marshall smirked, “Okay, Bub, you go ahead and get some rest. We’ll talk in the morning.”

“No we won’t,” Bubba relaxed against the pillow, “You’ll be gone by then.”

“Right, right,” Marshall laid his hand on Bubba’s forehead, his red eyes glowed like fire, “Now sleep.”

* * *

 

Bubba woke up the next morning, refreshed and slightly ashamed. He didn’t expect to be able to sleep so well, or so deeply, after breaking up with Fionna. It was only the oddly handsome boy, or vampire, as he had called himself, that disturbed his rest. The vampire’s light brown eyes that could nearly pass as red had bore into him and that smirk, like he already knew everything there was to know. Even his raven black hair seemed darker than the normal black, like it had been infected by an abyss. Marshall Lee. The boy had been right about one thing. Bubba couldn’t have created someone like that on his very own so where did the image come from?

He shrugged off the thought. Over thinking his dreams has irritated him far too often.

That was what he thought until he felt the covers shift and a hand touch his thigh.

Another high-pitched squeal rang through the air.

“Seriously, Bubba,” Marshall rolled over and covered his ears. He obviously wasn’t wearing a shirt and Bubba couldn’t pull his eyes away from the pale, almost greenish glow coming from the back that was now facing him. Marshall added after not hearing him lay back down, “Just go back to sleep, Bub.”

“Yes,” Bubba nodded, “I must still be dreaming.” He laid back down and went back to sleep.

Only to be woken up moments later by his ringtone, a jazz song called ‘Just a Cloud Away.’ He reached around the floor until his hand came upon the phone. Even with his eyes closed, he could locate the answer button on his smartphone and held the phone to his ears.

“Bubba,” a female voice scolded, “You aren’t still in bed, are you?”

“Uh…” his head took a minute to process the question, “Bonnie?”

“You are still in bed. I know you’re sad about Fionna but you can’t stay in bed all day. Come on, let’s see if Lady and Mono can hang out then we’ll all go to the science museum. That’ll cheer you up.”

“Right, Bon,” Bubba rubbed his eyes, “Sounds good.”

The girl huffed a bit, “You don’t seem to be listening. Get up and get ready, we’ll pick you up in an hour.”

“Right,” Bubba hung up and collapsed on the bed.

A sudden penetrating voice asked, “Are you going?”

Bubba nearly squealed again but a large bony hand clamped down over his mouth, “You are not doing that again, Bub.”

Bubba fell off the bed while trying to scurry away from the shirtless man in his bed. “Who are you and what are you doing in my bed?”

Marshall rolled his eyes, “We went over this Gummy. I’m Marshall Lee, the vampire king, you’re a nerdy guy who was just dumped. I think it’s all pretty straight-forward.”

“But,” Bubba stammered, “But vampires don’t exist.”

“Keep telling yourself that, dude,” Marshall floated up and flew to pick up his close off the ground. Bubba could now see that the vampire wasn’t only shirtless but was pantless too. He turned away to keep himself from getting entranced by his skinny long legs and the perfect shape of the man’s-

Stop. “Get out,” Bubba covered his face with his hands to keep from exposing his fierce blush, “Why are you even here?”

“I need a place to crash for a bit,” Marshall dressed in mid-air, “My old place kind of collapsed.”

Bubba whined, “Why here? I don’t want you to drink my blood.”

“Relax, I’m not into bubblegum flavored food. Besides, I don’t drink blood per se, I drink the color red.”

“The color red,” Bubba looked up incredulously, “That’s ridiculous.”

“Not as ridiculous as the amount of pink in your closet.”

“I like pink,” Bubba retorted, “Is that wrong?”

“Of course not,” Marshall smirked, “It just makes me wonder how you ever got a girlfriend in the first place. You’re obviously an effeminate guy, and I’m being polite here, so what on earth did she see in you?”

Bubba reddened again but this time, out of rage, “She saw a perfectly nice, handsome gentleman.”

“With money,” Marshall added with a wide gesture towards the entire room.

“Fionna isn’t like that,” Bubba stood threateningly, “She doesn’t care about money.”

“Dude, you just gave me every reason why she dumped you. Girls don’t want a ‘nice, handsome gentleman’ and since she doesn’t care about money, there was nothing keeping her around.” Marshall floated over and landed in front of Bubba and flipped his hair out of his eyes, “Listen, I’ll tell you how to win her back in exchange for letting me crash here for a bit.”

Bubba went speechless after being hit with the full effect of the man’s light brown- no, red eyes. They were definitely red. He was taller too with a deceptively wide chest.

The smirk on Marshall’s mouth became a bit crueler as he asked, “Or are you done with girls?”

Bubba opened his mouth but nothing came out. He had caught the meaning, knew the implication, felt rage but more than anything, he wanted to get the vampire to stop staring into his soul. Finally, he broke eye-contact and dived into the bathroom. In the bathroom, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he had just signed a contract with the devil.


	2. Chapter 2

He had to rush as he got ready, mostly to keep the interfering vampire off his mind. It didn’t help much, he could still feel the creature watching every move he made. By time his doorbell rang, he was still trying to perfect his dome.

Marshall smoothly called out, “I got it.”

Bubba barely heard him. He nearly had it, just a couple more nudges, not too hard.

Marshall just smirked and went towards the buzzard. As expected of a posh place like that, there was a little screen that showed the concerned faces of three other teenagers, there was a girl with pink dyed hair, the same as Bubba’s, a tall, bony Asian boy with black hair that went around his shoulders and a nearly as tall Asian girl with with long hair that mixed in a combination of purple and pinks. There was a red button near the intercom and a white button under the picture. He took his chances with the white button and watched as the group came in.  

After seeing the door close behind them, he turned on the living room flatscreen and settled on the white couch to watch television. He was hoping there was some lame vampire movie was on. He loved to laugh at how wrong the humans were. There was a knock at the door. Right, there was yet another locked door. Marshall sighed as he stood to unlike the door but once he unlocked it, walked away. The teens came in and stared at him with obvious befuddlement.

The pink hair girl asked, alarmed, “Who are you?”

“I’m a friend of Gummy bear, Marshall Lee. Who are you?”

“I’m his best friend,” the girl crossed her arms and glared, “Bonnie.”

“Oh,” Marshall smirked, “You’re the one that called him this morning.”

Her jaw dropped, “How do you know about that?”

“I was-”

“Marshall,” he was interrupted by Bubba running into the room, “Don’t you dare say a word to them. You’re going to ruin Bonnie’s mind. Guys, just ignore him and I’ll be out in a minute.” Bubba ran back into the room.

Marshall snickered, “You’d think he’d know me well enough to try to enforce tha-”

“Actually,” Bubba came back in the room, grabbed Marshall by the arm and dragged him into the room. By the time he closed the door, Marshall was bending over with laughter.

“You know, Gummy,” Marshall’s finger wagged as he pointed at the both of them, “I’m feeling a lack of trust between us.”

“Of course I don’t trust you,” Bubba snapped, “You invade my home, invade my life and now you plan to stay here?”

Marshall replied innocently, “I did offer to help you get the girl in return.”

Bubba shook his head angrily, “You’re crazy if you think I actually want your help.”

“Crazy?” Marshall chuckled, his red eyes suddenly aglow like a fire. He leaned over so close that they shared the same air. “Gummy bear, you don’t know the half of it.”

“Uh, um,” Bubba tried to stumble across something to say but his brain stalled. He stared into those red eyes, somehow already knowing that they were centuries old, saw death and despair and could see into his very anatomy. Bubba moved backwards, fear sliding past his defenses as he tripped against the leg of his desk. Marshall bent down and slowly and deliberately traced Bubba’s jawline with a finger. Bubba gasped, a chill went through him.

“What’s wrong, Gummy?” A slight sneer could be heard in the vampire’s smooth voice, “You suddenly look frightened.”

“What happened?” Bonnie busted through the bedroom door with Mono and Lady following behind, “I heard a bump.” She looked down at the both of them, her eyes narrowed on Marshall.

“Gummy just tripped, I was about to help him up,” as a support for his response, Marshall held a hand out to Bubba.

Bubba snapped out of his daze and used to the desk to lift himself up. “I, uh,” he shook his head to clear the fog that had gathered in his head, “I need to use the bathroom.” He ran into the bathroom and closed the door. His heart. God, it was beating so quickly that he thought that he’d might drop dead. He was so scared, scared and…

What? Entranced? Mesmerised? Spellbound? Maybe even throw in enthralled to make him sound like a real masochist.

He shook his head, the fog not yet cleared. There was definitely something wrong here.

Meanwhile, Marshall was left outside with a very suspicious, pink haired girl.

“What happened?” she asked, her glare trained on the stranger’s light brown eyes.

He smiled innocently, “Like I said, Bub tripped.”

“Tripped while doing what?”

Marshall shrugged, “Walking, I guess. He wasn’t exactly flying, I can tell you that.”

Her glare didn’t budge.

“Are you suspicious of all of Bub’s friends?”

“Only the ones that look like the type to take advantage of him.”

“Does he get taken advantage of often?”

“No and I’d like to keep it that way so please leave.”

Marshall laughed, “I think I’ve found another reason why Gum Gum was dropped. Who would want to date a guy that has a guardian around him 24/7? It’s time for Bub to grow up and he can’t do that if his mommy is around all the time.”

“I think he’s right,” they all rounded to look at Mono.

His sister hit him and spoke to him in Korean. He responded in Korean, not even bothering to look at her. Bonnie inserted something in Korean and Mono responded to her. It turned into a Korean argument with the two girls against the deadpan boy. It didn’t last long before he finally said something that made the girls fall silent. Something about Finn and the guys.

It didn’t really matter to Marshall. All that mattered was that he now had the upperhand. “Right, I don’t know what he just said but I totally agree. You guys should go ahead to the science museum and let me handle cheering Gummy up.”

Bonnie’s glare weakened and she asked reluctantly, “Can we trust you?”

Marshall shrugged, “You never know until you give me a chance. Bub let me into his home so that should count for something.”

She nodded, “What do you guys think?”

Lady said in a vaguely korean accent, “I still want to see the new exhibit on vectors.”

Bonnie sighed, “Not about that, Lady, about Bubba.”

“Oh,” Lady smiled shyly, “Sorry. Let’s allow Bubba’s friend, um…”

“Marshall Lee,” Marshall provided.

“Right, let’s allow Marshall Lee to handle this.”

Bonnie nodded again, her frown growing deeper. “Fine, we’ll go.” They walked towards the door but before leaving, Bonnie swung around and said in a low voice, “I will not forgive you if you get him an any trouble.”

Marshall just smiled, “Of course, bye bye.”

 

Bubba came out moments later wearing a white t-shirt and a hoodie. He circled around, looking for his friends before finally asking Marshall, “Where did they go?”

“Oh, they thought that you invited me over to cheer you up,” Marshall lied easily, “So they went ahead to the science museum themselves.”

“What?” Bubba exclaimed skeptically, “They wouldn’t do that, especially not Bonnie. What did you say to them?”

“Nothing much. Just that a guy need a boys’ night out when he has a broken heart. They just assumed that I was the only guy friend that you could go to.”

“Liar. They know I have other guy friends.”

“That you actually hang out with?”

Bubba went silent.

“Exactly. Let me fill you in on your current social status. You’re the gay friend that all the girls adore but the guys feel awkward around. Both these responses towards you aren’t because you’re gay but because you act gay.”

“I’m not gay.”

“Fine, effeminate, picky about terms, aren’t you? I’m just saying, stop baking cupcakes and start carrying a football.”

“What’s wrong with baking?”

Marshall paused and ran a hand through his pitch black hair, “Okay, I would say that’s a stupid question but I’m not going to insult your intelligence by saying that out loud. If you played baseball, fine, bake. If you played football, go for it. But when a small, delicate pink guy comes out the kitchen with pink cupcakes, people’s gaydars go haywire.”

Bubba crossed his arms and pouted, “So what do you plan to do? Get me buff?”

Marshall snickered, “Trust me, Bub, that won’t stop a gaydar from picking you up on it’s scanners. First, we’re going to a bar.”

Bubba’s mouth hung open. “A bar?”

“Don’t tell me you haven’t been to,” Marshall stopped then laughed, “You seriously haven’t been to a bar? Come on, Dorothy, we really need to get you out of Kansas.”

 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A drunk Bubba isn't a happy Bubba.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains mild language and mild nudity as well as a bar scene. I apologize for any discrepancies, I'm not a drinker nor am I ever around people who drink while they are drinking so everything about Bubba's drunkness is from my imagination.

The bar that Marshall led Bubba to was a moderate place, not too posh but tastefully decorated, dark and generally secluded from the world. It was called ‘A Gentleman’s Lies.’

The bartender, a short, dark haired man with a short beard and long mustache, smiled when he saw Marshall walk in.

“Marshall, my lad, haven’t seen you in a while.”

“Hey, Rusty, this is my pal, Bubba,” Marshall stepped aside only to find that Bubba was still up the stairs, outside the place. He went up, grabbed Bubba’s arm and pulled his down and repeated, “This is my pal, Bubba.”

“Bubba,” Rusty gave him a toothy grin, “My name is Rustavio but you may call me Rusty. Any friend of Marshall’s is a friend of mine.”

Marshall gave Bubba a small shove towards a couple of free bar stools. The bar was sparsely inhabited and the few men who were in there gave Marshall small nods.

“Hey, Rusty,” Marshall threw a brotherly arm around Bubba, “My pal here just got dumped so we need something to hit home hard.”

“Oh,” Rusty strokes his mustache, “I see, well how about some one hundred percent shots, eh?”

Marshall asked Bubba in a whisper, “Have you ever had alcohol before?”

Bubba shook his head and looked around like a frightened mouse that was afraid to get caught.

Marshall shook his head at Rusty, “That’s a bit too hard for the guy.”

Rusty nodded, “He does seem like a light weight. Eighty percent?”

Marshall nodded, “Sounds like a good starter.”

“Wait a second, Marshall,” Bubba was officially spooked, “I don’t want to lose control of my facilities that quickly.”

“Come on, Bubs,” Marshall smirked and winked at Rusty, “You don’t think it’d be that easy to get drunk, do you?”

Bubba looked at him with utter confusion. “Isn’t it that easy?”

“Bub, people exaggerate. One eighty isn’t enough to knock you out for the night.”

Bubba cried in frustration, “What is this eighty you’re talking about?”

“Eighty percent alcohol, twenty percent water,” on cue, Rusty placed a eighty in front of him and Marshall held it up for Bubba to see the small glass, “Do the math, Bub, it means less potent. Just shoot this down your throat and you’ll start to warm up to life. You do want to become more manly, don’t you?”

Bubba nodded, his eyes focused on the glass.

“Then do what men do. I’ll take one with you. Rusty?” Another glass appeared immediately along with Rusty’s grin.

“I didn’t think you’d let your friend drink alone.”

Marshall nodded towards the drink, “Got what it takes?”

Bubba frowned at Marshall and ignored his trembling hand as he picked up the glass. “Of course.”

“Right, let’s do this,” Marshall knocked back the drink with languid ease and motioned for Bubba to do the same.

Bubba imitated the movement but went into a coughing fit afterwards.

“Uh, Marshall,” Bubba grabbed onto his head as if it might fly away, “Why does my head feel funny?”

Rusty chuckled, “Forget light-weight. This kid has no weight at all.”

Marshall nodded in agreement as he rubbed Bubba’s back comfortingly. “That may happen, it’ll get better as we go. Rusty, another set.”

Ten minutes later.

“I just don’t understand that woman,” Bubba slurred. He was laying on the bar but his mouth moved at a hundred miles an hour, “She loves me one minute and the next, she’s not eating a single one of my cupcakes. If she didn’t like guys like me then why did she even agree to date me? It must have been the teasing. That’s why she dumped me. She told me about how those jerks, Finn and Jake, teased her about who was the girl in the relationship. I mean, I think it’s cute that she’s a tomboy. I even took her to a wrestling match for one of our dates, granted I didn’t stay long but who would have thought that it’d be so violent? Have you ever seen one of those matches? It’s gruesome what those men do to each other, absolutely horrid.”

Marshall hummed quietly. He had stopped Bubba at three and was now sipping away at a blood red punch (naturally, a vodka based drink).

“Then this new guy came. Even I noticed her mouth hanging open whenever he passed. He’s… He’s kind of like you, Marshall, cool and manly but you’re cooler, Marshall, though you frighten the living daylights out of me.”

Marshall perked up, “What?”

“You heard me, you frighten the living daylights out of me. I want to run away from you but I can’t.”

Marshall smirked. Finally. Getting somewhere fun. “And why is that Gummy?”

“Because sometimes you have this look, a sort of look like anyone would do as long as they stayed. Marshall, sometimes you look so lonely, I wish I wasn’t too frightened to hug you. Hey, wait a moment,” Bubba sprung up, “I’m not frightened right now.”

Marshall moved away instinctively, “Uh, Bub, what are you about to…?”

Bubba wrapped his arms around Marshall’s head and tightened. Marshall could have easily broken away from him, and he wanted to, but something about the hug left him exhausted.

“Okay, Rusty," Marshall stood. Bubba's arms dropped and he leaned on Marshall's chest, "I’m going to take this kid home before he pukes or passes out. Or both. Put this on my tab, would you?”

 “No problem, Marshall,” Rusty chuckled, “And do me a favor.”

Marshall lifted Bubba and threw him across his back despite the drunk’s complaints, “What’s up?”

Rusty winked at him, “Take a minute and think about how it felt to be hugged for the first time in centuries.”

Marshall nodded, a lump forming in his throat. His voice cracked as he tried to laugh so he left with a sullen, “Right, bye Rusty.”

He carried Bubba out and strapped into the passenger seat of the teenager’s red Hyundai genesis then got into the drivers seat. Before starting the car, he sat back and sighed. “As if I wasn’t already going to do that.”

Bubba continued to babble on the way home, going from baking recipes to exhibits in the science museum until he leaned out the window and simply vomited. He vomited a couple more times before leaning back and muttering, “What happened?”

“Just relax, Gummy. We’re almost home.”

“Right,” Bubba relaxed. A second later, Marshall could see the steady rise and fall of his chest.

Marshall sighed, "this wasn't part of the plan."

They pulled up to Babba's apartment and Marshall got out and opened Babba's door. He contemplated for a moment waking Babba up but he couldn't stand the thought of the boy seeing the face he was wearing and how many emotions were stripped bare by a single hug. Instead, he gathered the boy in a bridal hold and carried him into into the building, all the way to Babba's bed where he laid the boy down. Marshall moved mechanically, wringing out a wet towel to clean the vomit from the corner of Bubba's mouth and undressing him. Then he froze. He never thought that Bubba's chest would be an adorable tint of pink. Even his nipples were a delectable shade of pink. Marshall traced a hand down Bubba's sternum, intentionally dragging his finger across perky nipple as he dragged his hand off the body. His eyes devoured every trace of the body mercilessly, looking for the part he would like to bite most, and-

Woah, what the hell, Marshall. His eyes snapped up, away from the defenseless teen.

"You're just crashing here, helping him get the girl," Marshall muttered to himself, "You are not raping him with your eyes." His eyes strayed back down then snapped right back up. "Okay, I'm making an executive decision. Marshall, you are sleeping on the couch tonight and don't you dare argue with me, God dammit." Marshall covered Bubba with his comforter and took a step back and shook his head. "Damn, what is this kid doing to me?"

 

Bubba instantly felt the raw throbbing the moment he opened his eyes. He sat up reluctantly, trying to overpower the wave of dizziness that hit him. He caught sight of the coffee table beside his bed. It had been moved there so that a peeled orange, couple pills of aspirin and glass of water was within his reach. Bubba moved slowly, partly because of his massive headache but mostly because only one person could have laid out these provisions.

After eating and taking the aspirin, he tried to think back to last night. It came back and hit him with full force. He had actually hugged Marshall. He had stood and pressed Marshall’s head against his chest out of his volition. And what on earth had he been babbling about before then? Thank God, he had enough sense to vomit outside his car. He had hugged Marshall.

He felt his heart clench painfully at the very memory. Why on earth had he done something so mortifying? True, he had caught the times when the vampire seemed to be smiling from the very bottom of his heart but that was no reason to hug him.

“Gummy bear?” Marshall came in the room, smirking, “You should have told me you were awake. I have a total of twenty-three messages to relay. Twenty from Bon Bon, two from Cake and one from an infamous Fionna.”

“Fionna,” Bubba sprang out of bed, only to be forced back down by another wave of dizziness, “What did she say?”

“Well,” Marshall drawled, “I think I’ll start with Cake’s messages. She said that she’s sorry about Fionna and hope that you will still hang out at the mall with all of them today.”

Bubba barked, “And Fionna?”

“Pretty much the same thing. Hopes that you’re still friends, wants you to go to the mall. From the sound of her voice, she hates how guilty she’s feeling which I can understand. It must have taken a bit of effort to break it off with someone as delicate as you.”

“I’m not delicate,” Bubba cried while fighting back tears. “I just can’t understand why I’m not good enough for her.”

“Don’t cry.” The sudden demand was enough to wipe away the almost tears. “Nothing is worse than watching you cry over some girl.”

Bubba looked over to see Marshall’s eyes burning red. Marshall had his arms folded, like a lock that kept him from flying into a uncontrolled rage.

Bubba looked away, once again feeling a strange throb in his chest. “What do you mean?” he asked slowly, “Why would you care if I cried?”

“If you plan to go to the mall then you may want to start getting ready, Gummy Bear. It’s already two p.m.”

“What?” Bubba forgot his question and searched his bed for his phone. “Where did I put my phone?”

“Gummy Bear, you don’t have a house phone,” Marshall held up his cell phone with a grin, “So how else would I know who called you?” Without waiting for a response, Marshall tossed it lightly onto Bubba’s bed and closed the door behind him.

Bubba frowned at his back, “How rude.”

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It should be a good thing so why isn't anyone happy?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fyren is Flame Prince

“I’m telling you guys, Fyren was so algebraic at his last football game,” Fionna exclaimed to the group, “It was like magic.”

Finn and Jake just glanced at each other with smirks while Cake and Bonnie frowned. The group was sitting around at the food court, talking while feasting on fattening burgers, fries and shakes. The fair-haired Finn was wearing his white, eared hat as usual and occasionally stole some of Jake’s fries. Jake, the short, black-eyed boy with dyed orange hair was grinning as always while he pretended not to notice Finn’s straying hand. Cake, with her light brown hair glaring under the mall’s artificial light, was leaning on her arm with a frown of obvious disapproval as she listened and Bonnie had the same frown but she glared at her phone, rereading a scientific essay that didn’t seem right for a reason that she just couldn’t figure out..

Cake commanded mildly, “Don’t say that when Bubba gets here.”

“I don’t see what you find so amazing about him,” Bonnie scoffed, “I actually met him and he just seems dangerous. A guy like him will just end up in jail in the future.”

“We all know Fionna has a thing for dangerous guys,” Finn remarked.

“Yeah,” Jake teased, “If her tongue hung out any further when a certain ‘dangerous guy; was around then it’d fall out.”

“Shut up,” Fionna face became slightly flushed, “I just think he’s cool, that’s all.”

Jake shrugged sarcastically, “Right, of course, that’s all it is.”

Finn snickered, “As if.”

“Okay, guys,” Cake clapped her hands, “Can we all agree to be nice and polite and not insensitive jerks when Bubba gets here?”

The two boys and Fionna avoided her eyes.

Bonnie sighed, “Maybe we shouldn’t have pressured Bubba into coming. It doesn’t seem like he’d have any fun with this set of company.”

“He’ll have fun,” Finn claimed, “We’ll make sure of it. Even if that means talking about his new recipes and what shade of pink looks best on him and dingdongs like that.”

Cake sighed, “Just be nice.”

“Hey guys,” The group turned around and their mouths slammed against the ground.

Bubba had arrived but it wasn’t quite the Bubba they had grown used to seeing. Rather than a bright pink blob, they saw a young man dressed in a plain white t-shirt that clung to his slim figure and black skinny jeans that well defined his long legs. Instead of the dome piece that he usually wore, Bubba’s soft pink hair was down and combed to the side but that didn’t stop a few strains from falling recklessly over his eyes. He noticed their staring, “What’s up?”

“Uh,” Fionna stood awkwardly, “Bubba, you, uh… you look great.”

A light blush came to Bubba’s cheeks, his mind raced furiously. Did she really like the outfit Marshall had picked out for him or was she just being nice? However, Fionna wasn’t the type to hand out compliments so she must like it. He hadn’t been keen on giving up his dome piece but if it delivered these types of results, maybe Marshall knew what he was talking about. Bubba turned away, embarrassed, “Thanks. Um… Aren’t we going to walk around?”

The rest of the group nodded and stood, all slightly dazed by Bubba’s new look.

“Bubba,” Bonnie came beside him, smiling, “You really do look nice. Is this you turning over a new leaf and you know, forgetting?”

“Um,” Bubba massaged his shoulder nervously, “Marshall just told me that I should try out a new look. He picked this out.”

“Oh, Fionna was talking about him,” Finn said thoughtlessly, “She was saying how he was pretty math.”

Bubba tried to smile in return but it turned into a look of dismay, “I see.” Bubba continued with a chuckle that was supposed to light hearted but instead thickened the gloom, "I thought you'd like him."

“I mean, you’re pretty math too,” Finn continued, trying to make some type of recovery, “Just a different type of math, like you’re geometry and he’s algebra and together you’re calculus or something like that.”

“Right,” Bubba’s gaze traveled to the ground, “Thanks Finn.”

Cake pinched Finn, making him cringe in pain and cry, “Sorry, sorry, sorry.”

“It’s okay, Cake,” Bubba eyes rose to meet Cake but at the sight of Fionna, became downcast again, “I’m fine.”

“Yeah, you don’t have to worry about this guy,” a familiar arm wrapped around his shoulder and the familiar voice rang in his ears.

Bubba looked up and his mouth opened in horror, “Marshall, what are you doing here?”

“I told you I was going to be at the mall,” Marshall grinned down at him, “Is it just me or do have the darnest habit of ignoring me?”

Bubba frowned at him, “Did you say that somewhere between ‘what type of bra are you going to get?’ and ‘fine, fine, I’ll stop’?”

“You were ignoring me that whole time?” Marshall asked, honestly surprised.

“Yes I was,” Bubba grinned, “You didn’t think anyone could ignore the magnificent Marshall, did you?”

Marshall’s mouth slackened into a gentle smile as the boy teased him. “Fine, I admit, I didn’t think it was possible but I was proved wrong. You actually managed to ignore a procession of great jokes told by this hypnotic voice.”

Bubba laughed, “Arrogant much?”

“Yes,” Marshall answered easily, “Very much, actually.”

As the boys joked around, Fionna watched attentively and noted something that was odd, something that she may have even been jealous of.

“It’s weird,” she whispered to Cake and Bonnie. Finn and Jake had gone onto their own ridiculous conversation after hearing bras mentioned. “Bubba never laughed like that when we talked. It was like he always had this polite smile around me. I think this is the first time I’ve ever heard him… you know, joke around.”

“Well,” Cake replied, “Have you ever joked around with him?”

Fionna’s face was blank, “Um… no.”

“Have you ever tried?”

Fionna turned away and looked at the laughter bright in Bubba’s eyes as he frowned at Marshall. “No, I guess not.”

"You know, you never really gave Bubba a chance to be himself. You wanted him to be a prince so he acted like a prince then when you got tired of him being princely, you decided that you wanted something different. Don't you think that's sort of unfair?"

Fionna argued, "Isn't that just the way he is? The way he walks and talks is princely... right?"

"Maybe to some degree but why don't you look at him now and tell me if he's as princely as he usually seems to be?"

Fionna didn't need to turn around, she could tell just by listening to Bubba's rough, boyish laughter. He suddenly didn't seem all that different from Finn, Jake and Fyren. It just wasn’t fair. “What do you want me to do?”

Cake shrugged, “You two already broke up so there’s not much you can do.”

“Well,” Fionna said slowly, “Maybe I can convince him to give me another chance to let me see the real him.”

“Fionna,” Cake said hesitantly, “I don’t really think that’s a good idea.”

However, Fionna wasn’t listening but vigorously motioning Finn and Jake closer without attracting Bubba’s attention. They came closer and she whispered the plan. Cake just shook her head, ashamed of them but she couldn’t see a reason to stop them. She just muttered to herself, “I have a bad feeling about this.”

 

The plan was simple. Simply remove Marshall, who had been glued to Bubba from the moment he appeared, get Bubba alone and ask for another chance. The boys were only too enthusiastic to go through with ‘the mission.’

Slowly, the group directed the two unsuspecting boys towards a store that was sure to catch the unique Marshall Lee’s attention and distract him while Bubba was steered into a more secluded part of the mall.

They came across Hot Topic, a store for any who, to say the least, didn’t appreciate the mainstream products sold in big name stores. Marshall was automatically hooked and Finn and Jake went through with coercing him further and further into the store by playing dumb. Bubba was following behind cluelessly until Fionna grabbed his collar and towed him away.

He asked frantically, “What is this about Fionna?”

Fionna said with her mission voice, “I just need to talk to you.” She found an empty table in the food court and released him, motioning for him to take a seat.

Still slightly stricken by being alone with Fionna, he obeyed.

He asked timidly, “So what’s up?”

“Bubba,” Fionna frowned as she wondered exactly how straight-forward she should be. Cake was always scolding her on being insensitive. “I was just thinking and it was kind of unfair of me to break up with you so one-sidedly.” She could see Bubba’s eyes widen with a glimmer of hope and forced down sudden waves of guilt. “So I was wondering if you want to try again.”

His eyes lit up. “Really?”

Fionna nodded, “Really.”

“Of course,” he grabbed her hands, “I would love to.”

“That’s great, Bub,” they were both startled by Marshall’s voice. Bubba turned to see him standing over him. “I need to get going, I’ll see you later.”

They watched as Marshall turned around and retreated into the crowd.

No, Bubba, you don’t want to run after him.

And no, Marshall, you don’t have a heart, remember?  How can something that doesn’t exist feel like it’s tearing itself in half.


	5. One more time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marshall tries to ignore his feelings and Bubba tries to ignore his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you probably already know but just to reiterate, Fyren is Flame Prince and in addition to him there's also John Cinna, known as Cinnamon and he's human Cinnamon Bun. 
> 
> Also, it was brought to my attention that Fionna is something of a... well, bitch, in my story. If you thought that then just read this chapter and feel free to leave a comment on whether or not you think so.  
> I honestly love Fionna and it was never my intention to make her look bad however...

“Are you sure you’re okay, Marshall?” Bubba buttoned up his white shirt clumsily. He stood over Marshall, watching anxiously as the vampire reclined on the couch silently.

Marshall gave him a lazy thumbs up and went back to whatever British program he was watching. He didn’t even know the title of the show and had no idea what the plot was but it was better than watching Bubba getting ready for a date.

Bubba frowned at him, “Can you use words please?”

Marshall glanced up while saying, “No,” and caught sight of the mess of buttons. His expression transitioned from indifference to amusement. “Bubba, do you pay any attention when you dress yourself? I bet you wear all pink just because you can’t color coordinate.”

Bubba huffed indignantly as Marshall sat up and started undoing his buttons from the top down. “I can do it myself.”

“Right, right,” Marshall continued unbuttoning but froze when he came near the bottom.

Bubba was insanely slim around his waist and his stomach was flat under his white t-shirt. As if he hadn’t already noticed but being that close to it only made him think about it more.

“Um,” Marshall’s head snapped up, “Are you okay?”

Instead of admitting how un-okay he was, Marshall grinned and poked Bubba right on the belly button. 

Bubba hunched over, more with surprise than pain. He swatted at Marshall angrily, “What did you do that for?”

Marshall laughed, “Cause I felt like it.”

Bubba’s eyes slid over to the two teeth holes in Marshall’s neck and poked them in retaliation. Marshall stiffened, chills ran up and down his spine for a minute before he could finally get out the words, “That wasn’t very nice, Gummy.”

Bubba didn’t respond but stood transfixed by his new discovery.

“Marshall,” Bubba asked in disbelief, “Is your neck that sensitive?”

Marshall laughed uneasily, “No, your hand is just a bit cold and you caught me by surprise.”

Bubba reached towards Marshall’s neck again but once Marshall caught sight of the movement, he dodged, propelling himself backwards onto the couch. Bubba giggled and lunged for his neck again. This time, Marshall caught Bubba’s hands and pushed him back while Bubba pushed forward. He could have overpowered Bubba but he found himself weak from the laughter that was escaping him.

“Come on, Gummy, get off.”

“No,” Bubba pushed forward even more and Marshall pushed back just as much. 

“Fine,” Marshall pulled Bubba down and rolled over so that he was on top of Bubba, “How do you like this?”

Bubba responded by putting his hands around Marshall’s neck.

The electric shock that went through Marshall transferred to Bubba as their bodies grinded together. 

 A gasp fell through Bubba’s mouth.

They froze.

Too close, Marshall, way too close. Damn, you couldn’t get any closer even if you wanted to. Pull back, don’t make a mistake.

A sudden wave of desire his Marshall, he pressed his lips against Bubba’s soft, pink lips. He only realized what he did as he felt Bubba stiffen under him.

Dammit, Marshall. Just… Dammit.

He pulled back quickly and looked down at Bubba, somewhat fearful of what he was going to see. Bubba was staring up at him, stunned then a moment later, his face was blazing red and a hand covered his mouth. Rather than being disgusted, he seemed simply...  astonished.

Marshall’s mind moved rapidly as he said teasingly, “Relax, Gummy, I was just playing around. Don’t tell me that was your first kiss.”

Bubba’s astonishment turned into mortified anger as he sat up and while pushing Marshall off him, “Of course not. And what type of ill-bred joke is that? You don’t kiss someone as a joke.”

Marshall laughed derisively, “Sorry, Bub, I should have known that you’d never kissed before so of course you’d take it seriously.”

“I’ve kissed before,” Bubba retorted defensively.

“Prove it,” Marshall smirked more at the opportunity than at Bubba, “Kiss me.”

Bubba hesitated, his face reddening with something more than anger. His gaze traveled down to Marshall’s lips, he leaned forward, entranced. He came closer and closer, slowly falling into Marshall’s passionate red eyes. Their lips barely brushed before Bubba’s phone erupted with some pop song that he had liked. His mind was twirling so furiously that he couldn’t even remember the name of it as he jumped away from Marshall, grabbed his phone and ran out the door.

Bubba trembled slightly as he sped down the hallway and pounded on the elevator button viciously until he heard the reprieving ding. There was a business woman already on, talking at a hundred miles an hour on her phone. She didn’t bother glancing at him much to Bubba’s relief since he knew how he looked. The boy was red-faced, his clothes were sloppy from rolling around on the couch, his hair must have been a mess and pure fright was evident on his graceful features.  He looked like he had been assaulted.

Hell, he had been assaulted and then he had played along with his assailant.

Bubba felt frustrated, angry at Marshall, angry at himself but most of all, he wondered what would have happened if his phone hadn’t gone off. Surely, he would have come back to his senses before anything actually happened… Right?

He groaned inwardly then was relieved of the line of thought by a sudden ding. The elevator door opened and he rushed out to the apartment garage. After a couple minutes of walking, he found his car and started it.

And then wondered where he was going.

He sat back in his seat and groaned outwardly this time. Somehow, he couldn’t seem to organize his mind enough to even remember why he was planning to leave the house. As if to answer his question, his phone went off again. He pulled it out and answered it absently.

“Hello?”

“Bubba?” Bubba gasped.

“Fionna,” he exclaimed, “I’m so sorry, I got a bit off track. I’ll be there in a minute.”

“It’s fine,” Fionna assured him, her voice sounded a bit too cheery, “I’ll be waiting at the taco place.”

“Oh,” he shrugged off the change of location, “Okay, I’ll be there in a couple minutes.”

“Okay, bye.”

“Bye.”

Just as Bubba said, it took him barely five minutes to drive to the mall and find the taco place that he knew she loved. Mr. Taco.

He checked one more time to make sure that his hair was flat and his shirt was neat before heading towards the head of blonde hair sitting at a table. His heart fell to the pit of his stomach when he got there.

Fionna was sitting there, laughing and talking with the red-headed, tall Fyren of all people. Of all people. Why him?

He croaked, “Fionna, what is he doing here?”

Fionna spun around, guilt flashing in her eyes before she lowered them timidly and explained, “Fyren and his friend,” Bubba’s eyes flickered over to another guy sitting with them, a guy with light brown hair and wide, thick build, “were shopping when they saw me waiting for you and they said they’d keep me company until you got here.”

Bubba cleared his throat nervously, “Yes, sorry for the wait, I got distracted while getting ready.” He pushed away the memory and asked, eager to get away from them, “Shall we go?”

He tried not to see the disappointment that came across Fionna as she stood, “Sure, let’s go.”

“Can we come along?” His eyes snapped up at Fyren who was looking at him hopefully, “It’d be more fun as a group, right?”

His friend elbowed him and whispered fiercely, “They’re on a date.”

“Oh,” Fyren’s eyes widened, “Oh, sorry, I didn’t know that you guys were dating. Well I’ll see you later, Fionna.” Fyren glared at the table with embarrassment.

“No, why don’t you come?” Fionna said quickly.

Bubba stared at her with horror but she wasn’t looking at him. She was looking at Fyren. The amazing, football playing Fyren. Bubba redirected his gaze towards the ground and nodded when Fyren asked if it was okay. It wasn’t but he didn’t have much of a choice. It was either Fionna _and_ Fyren or neither.

He immediately fell to behind as the started walking, his steps matching that of Fyren’s friend. The guy said awkwardly, “Hey.”

Bubba’s gaze shifted up momentarily. Long enough for him to mutter, “Hey.”

“Um, you’re Bubba, right?”

Bubba nodded, “Sorry, I don’t know your name.”

“That’s okay, I’m John Cinna. My friends call me Cinnamon.”

When Bubba responded with nothing but a nod, Cinnamon continued, “I’m sorry for that,” he said nodding towards Fyren and Fionna, who were continuing their conversation.

Bubba shrugged.

Cinnamon reluctantly advised him, “I know you don’t want to hear this but maybe you should think about… finding someone new.”

Bubba smiled shakily, “Thanks for the advice, Cinnamon but...” He looked up at Fionna, his heart aching, “I just can’t.”


	6. Well,Very Well

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bubba and Marshall are talking again. Fionna probably wouldn't like what they're talking about.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know what to say... just sorry... I guess...

“Hey, Bub, do you want to come watch me sing Friday night?”

  
Bubba looked up from the couch and frowned thoughtfully. Marshall had just returned from who-knows-where a moment ago and now he was standing over Bubba, waiting for an answer. Marshall hadn’t said a word since the date with Fionna. Bubba hadn’t either considering how it turned out in the end. They were both depressed for their own reasons. Now Marshall was standing above him with faltering confidence. His smile lacked the luster it used to have. Bubba didn’t have to think much, “Of course but,” I have a date with Fionna that day.

  
Marshall frowned, “But what?”

  
Bubba wavered before he smiled and said, “Nothing, don’t worry about it. Where is it?”

  
Marshall grinned, the confidence of the old vampire king immediately coming back to him, “It’s at a bar that I came across. Open mike night but they all know that mike is reserved for me. I sang there a couple times and they couldn’t get enough of this golden voice.”

  
Bubba laughed, “More like copper from what I’ve heard.”

  
“Trust me, Gummy, after hearing me sing, you won’t be able to deny my royalty status. You’ll finally accept your position as my attentive servant.”

  
“I’m sorry, who’s your servant?” Bubba grabbed a pillow and whacked Marshall with it, “I am not your servant.”

  
“Accept your fate,” Marshall yelled, even with the onslaught of pillow attacks. He grabbed a pillow and started hitting back though he held back a lot of his strength. They attacked each other with the affectionate blows, their laughter bouncing off the apartment walls. They called a truce when Marshall caught sight of the time and suggested eating dinner. They went with a classic burger and fries from a local fast food joint and returned home. Bubba watched with amusement as Marshall tore into his burger with voracious intensity.

  
“Vampire king,” he muttered, “You don’t seem like much of a vampire to me.”

  
Marshall glared at Bubba playfully, “That’s only because I chose to spare your soul, mortal.”

  
Bubba rolled his eyes, “Right, aren’t vampires supposed to only drink blood?”

  
“Did I already explain this to you?” Marshall huffed, “We don’t just drink blood, we drink anything red. Just watch,” he stood up and opened the refrigerator. He dug around until he found a ripe tomato then he held it up for Bubba to see and pierced it with his fangs. The red color seeped out of it slowly, leaving a shriveled white skin. “See?”  
Bubba gaped at the remains of the tomato. “If you bit me, would I love like that?”

  
“Nah,” Marshall grinned mischievously, “Humans are different. We can leave you shriveled or,” he appeared behind Bubba, a strong arm wrapped around the teen’s waist and his fangs grazed his skin, “We can make you wither in pleasure. I really prefer the later.”

  
“Marshall,” Bubba whined weakly, “Stop playing around.”

  
“Playing?” Marshall smirked and nipped the base of his neck, “The vampire king doesn’t play.”

  
“No,no, no, no,” Bubba tried uselessly to break away, “You are not doing this to me. This isn’t funny and never will be so cut it out.”

  
“But Gummy,” Marshall pouted, “You taste so sweet.”

  
A blush immediately covered Bubba, “Marshall, seriously, stop. I’m dating Fionna, remember? I don’t think she’d like that her boyfriend was being bitten by a guy.”  
A wave of anger hit Marshall as soon as Bubba mentioned his girlfriend. He said snidely, “Fine, I won’t bite you but,” Marshall attached his lips to Bubba’s neck and sucked.

  
“Marshall,” Bubba mewled, “Stop, come on.”

  
Marshall ignored him and continued until he realized that he was giving Bubba a hickey. Bubba. The pink guy kid. Did his self-control decide to just screw him over today?  
By the time he could pull himself off, the damage was already done and there was a prominent hickey on Bubba’s neck for all to see.

  
“Oh,” Marshall laughed nervously, “Sorry Gummy.”

  
“What?” Bubba slapped a hand over his neck, “What did you do?”

  
Marshall smiled innocently, “You might want to take a look for yourself.”

  
Bubba certainly did. Until he actually saw it. Then he wished he could just dig himself a hole and hide in it. He stomped out of the bathroom, fuming. “You did not leave a hickey on me.”

  
Marshall took a step back before asking jokingly, “Does that mean I’m off the hook?”

  
He took the first frying pan Bubba threw at him as a no. The rest were just a rant that Bubba didn’t bother saying verbally but used his surprisingly good aim to express. But it was all worth it when he realized that Bubba now had a perfect reason to not see Fionna. For the next few days, Marshall was happy.

=================  
“Sorry, Fi,” Bubba sighed, “But can we reschedule the date this Friday? Something came up.”

  
“You want to reschedule?” Bubba could hear the shock in her voice. She was usually the one making this call. “Why? What happened?”

  
“Um,” What was a proper excuse for bailing out of doing something with his girlfriend? “Marshall kind of invited me to do something and it’s a one time thing,” it wasn’t a one time thing, “so I want to go.”

  
“Can’t I go with you?” She was confused. He used to always try to include her in his plans.

  
“Sorry, no,” she could but even if he didn’t have the enormous hickey on his neck, he wouldn’t want her to. “It’s a private occasion.”

  
“Oh.”

  
He didn’t know what to fill the silence with now. He felt like an awful boyfriend. But, he reasoned with himself, he couldn’t be an awful friend just because he has a girlfriend. “I guess I’ll talk to you later then.”

  
“Yeah,” she said slowly, “See you.”

  
“Bye.” He hung up first.

  
“How did she take it?” Bubba jumped and swung around to see Marshall at the bathroom door in nothing but a towel. The arrogance in his smirk was enough to smother a city.

  
“Marshall,” Bubba frowned, “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be in the shower?”

  
Marshall shrugged, “Came to ask you about the shampoo. Didn’t you buy more?”

  
“Oh, yes,” Bubba walked over to a bag in the corner of the room and took out a bottle of shampoo then tossed it to Marshall, “There you go.”

  
Marshall caught it easily, his smirk not wavering, “So? How did she take the news?”

  
“Well,” he answered, “Very well. Why?”

  
“Nothing,” his smirk softened into a smile, “Thanks, Bubba.”

  
A soft blush touched Bubba’s cheek, “No problem, Marshall.”


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maybe it's time to be honest.

“Hey, everybody, thanks for coming to The Knight’s open mike night. Tonight, we have a line up of great musicians from all over the city. Kidding, it’s just you guys.” The man on the stage was jeered at playfully, “Anyway, first in the line up is Sammy Sam and Pan’s flute.”

Bubba clapped while Marshall rolled his eyes and sipped his beer.

“A flute,” Marshall shook his head as Sammy Sam ran onto stage with his flute, “You have got to be kidding me. His name wasn’t lame enough?”

Bubba frowned at him, “Some of us may actually like the flute, in case you were wondering. It’s not all about Marshall all the time.”

“Yes it is,” Marshall argued jokingly, “Who else would it be about, Sammy Sam?”

Bubba chuckled, “Marshall, do you ever think of anyone other than yourself?”

“Of course I do,” Marshall placed an offended hand over his chest, “What do you see me as? I think about you-I mean, uh… uhhhhhhhhhh. Yeah, nice job,” Marshall suddenly joined the enthusiastic applause for Sammy Sam and Pan’s flute as the most enthusiastic of the audience.

“You think about me?” Bubba almost couldn’t believe it but he knew what he had heard. The self-absorbed vampire king thought about him. The first person the vampire king named was him.

“Shh, they’re going to announce the next performers.” Marshall turned his full attention to the stage, pretending to actually be interested. In actuality, he was beating himself up by letting his actual feelings slip. How stupid could he be to actually tell Bubba that the gum wad was on his mind twenty-four seven? He couldn’t even come up with another name to not make it seem so awkward.

“Marshall, come on,” Bubba laughed at the unnatural way Marshall held himself, like he was suddenly uncomfortable in his own skin. It was a far cry from the usual demonic confidence that he had and the difference was endearing to the teenager. “If it makes you feel any better, I can’t stop thinking about you either.” He regretted those words the moment they left his mouth.

“Really?” Marshall smirked. His ego was given the needed boost and now Bubba was fidgety and uncomfortable.

Bubba shrugged silently and avoided eye contact with the vampire.

“I wouldn’t blame you, you know, I’m very attractive but how would your little girlfriend feel about this?”

“There is no ‘this’,” Bubba argued, “I’m pretty sure anyone would constantly have the vampire that’s living with them on their mind. It’s not the most common thing in the world.”

“Plus I’m hot,” Marshall offered, grinning.

“No,” Bubba tried to fight a smile but it was breaking through, “But you are very arrogant.”

“But arrogance looks good on me, right?”

“It’s really quite arrogant of you to assume that.”

“But it’s the truth.”

“You only think that because you’re arrogant.”

“Come on, Gummy,” Marshall practically whined, “Just admit that I’m attractive.”

Bubba suppressed a laugh, “You’re not abominable.”

“I’m not abominable,” Marshall echoed in disbelief, “You might as well tell me I’m ugly as hell. Baby,” Marshall flipped his pitch black with ghetto fabulous flare, “I’m gorgeous.”

Unable to resist, Bubba finally burst with laughter, earning shushes from half the room. He covered his mouth but his shoulders were still shaking. Marshall chuckled along though he found more amusement from watching Bubba laugh then his own joke. “You’re ridiculous,” Bubba exhaled, “We’re being rude, we should be listening.”

Marshall snorted, “I’ll listen when someone good performs.”

Bubba shook his head at Marshall, “Don’t you want everyone to listen when you go up?”

“They’ll listen when someone good performs too,” Marshall replied with a wink.

“Oh, really?” Bubba rolled his eyes but smiled, “Then don’t be mad when you’re totally ignored.”

“Oh, Bubblegum, you’re so young, so innocent. It’s only natural that you don’t recognize a face that makes panties drop. All you know is that yours is already on the ground.”

“First of all, I don’t wear panties-”

Marshall interrupted, “Then what are those pink things under your pants?”

Ignoring the fact that Marshall knew the color of his underwear, Bubba answered, “Briefs.”

“Panties,” Marshall declared stubbornly.

“I do not wear panties,” Bubba insisted.

“You wear panties,” Marshall concluded, “There’s nothing wrong with wearing women’s underwear. Actually, I think it’d look pretty hot on you.”

For a second, Bubba just stared with a half open mouth, his shock not even beginning to fade. He exclaimed, “I’m not a woman. Of course I wouldn’t wear women’s underwear.”

Marshall chuckled, “Say that five times fast. But sure you would. You’re all pink and slim, it’d suit you nicely.”

He just received more of Bubba’s disbelieving stare.

“Okay, maybe I have a bit of a kink,” Marshall admitted. “But in my defense, I’m pretty sure I’m not the only guy who likes lingerie.”

“While I’d hate to interrupt this riveting conversation about lingerie,” The bar’s manager patted Marshall’s back, “You’re up next, Marsh.”

“Oh, thanks Freddie, I’ll be up in a second.” Marshall nodded at the man and turned back to Bubba, who was still staring at him with complete disbelief. He rolled his eyes, “Sorry for fouling your ears with talk of kinks, I’ll wash it out with my majestic singing. Listen close, Gummy.” He winked before joining the manager beside the stage and picking up and tuning a borrowed acoustic guitar.

When ready, he walked onto stage and sat in the stool set up for him. Before he spoke, he made eye contact with Bubba and smirked, enjoying how the teenagers eyes was on him and him alone. Then he remembered the song he was going to sing and his smile faltered.

Bubba noticed the difference immediately. Marshall’s smile became far more meek and his eyes became downcast, flickering up every once in a while to look at him.

Marshall said into the mike, “Hey, everyone, I’m Marshall Lee and I’ll be performing Give Me Love by Ed Sheeran.”

Bubba’s eyes widened as Marshall started strumming without breaking eye contact.

“Give me love like her,

'Cause lately I've been waking up alone,

Paint splattered teardrops on my shirt,

Told you I'd let them go,

And that I'll fight my corner,

Maybe tonight I'll call ya,

After my blood turns into alcohol,

No, I just wanna hold ya.

Give a little time to me or burn this out,

We'll play hide and seek to turn this around,

All I want is the taste that your lips allow,

My, my, my, my~, oh give me love,

My, my, my, my~, oh give me love,

My, my, my, my~, oh give me love,

****  
  


Give me love like never before,

'Cause lately I've been craving more,

And it's been a while but I still feel the same,

Maybe I should let you go,

You know I'll fight my corner,

And that tonight I'll call ya,

After my blood is drowning in alcohol,

No, I just wanna hold ya.

Give a little time to me or burn this out,

We'll play hide and seek to turn this around,

All I want is the taste that your lips allow,

My, my, my, my, oh give me love,

Give a little time to me or burn this out,

We'll play hide and seek to turn this around,

All I want is the taste that your lips allow,

My, my, my, my~, oh give me love,

My, my, my, my~, oh give me love,

My, my, my, my~, oh give me love.”

 

Marshall’s voice faded, leaving the room in a still silence. Seconds after he left the stage, ballistic applause filled the room.

Bubba was too shocked to join the applause. He almost couldn’t believe that Marshall could have such a soulful, pained, voice. Even while he stared at the vampire on stage, he couldn’t connect the two. Marshall Lee was always exuding confidence. He would never show such a vulnerable side of himself on stage. What made it even more confusing was how Marshall’s eyes never left his as he sang. Bubba wasn’t that painfully dense. He knew what it meant but he didn’t understand how it was possible. He was Gummy bear. Marshall didn’t even take Bubba seriously so he definitely wouldn’t have have feelings for him.

“Hey Bub,” Marshall slid back into his seat with his usual arrogant smile though there was an underlying uneasiness, “How’d you like it?”

“Uh, uh, uh,” Bubba’s face became tomato red, “I’m, uh, great, Marshall, great. Can we, uh?” He stood before he could finish and tripped over himself to get to the door.

“Go?” Marshall finished, half-amused and half-concerned.

Bubba nodded, “Go. We sh-should go.”

Marshall nodded curiously and followed him to his car.

“So,” Marshall buckled his seatbelt and watched the flustered Bubba start the car, “Was my voice so magical that you don’t know what to say?”

Bubba didn’t respond but blushed even more.

“Bubba, seriously, you’re starting to scare me.”

“What do you think of me?” Bubba blurted.

Marshall froze while Bubba babbled on, “I mean, I know you don’t like Fionna but I don’t know, I thought that was just a ‘not liking blondes thing’ and you watch me really closely, I mean really kind of disturbingly close but I thought that was just a vampire thing and then  you kissed me, which would be a huge indicator but you brushed it off like it was nothing and you’re Marshall Lee, you’re attractive enough to have kissed plenty of people in your lifetime so I figured it really was nothing to you but Marshall, that song,” Bubba inhaled deeply, “That song meant something and I have to know… is it me?”

Marshall was silent, his gaze focused on the window though he couldn’t see a thing. “What would you say if I said yes?”

There was a long silence before Bubba admitted, “I don’t know.”

 

 


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bubba is zoning out a bit.

 

“Bubba.”

“Bubba.”

 

“BUBBA.”

“What?” Bubba snapped. He caught sight of Bonnie’s shocked stare and apologized profusely. They were sitting in the library with books cracked over in front of them. Bubba had been staring blankly at a page for ages while his mind wandered.

“What happened?” she asked, ignoring his apologies. “You’ve been acting funny all week. Even Finn has noticed and Finn never notices anything.”

“You’re not giving Finn enough credit,” he said instead of answering the question, “He’s actually pretty sensitive when he wants to be.”

“Bubba,” Bonnie said firmly, her tone leaving no room for arguments, “Tell me what’s been bugging you lately.”

How do you tell someone that you may be falling for a vampire?

Scratch that. How do you tell someone you might be gay?

“You remember Marshall Lee, right?” Bubba ventured, figuring that would be the best place to start.

Bonnie nodded, “You new friend that seems to be very fond of punk rock.”

“He’s also an Ed Sheeran fan.” Bubba couldn’t help but smile at the memory of the mesmerizing song sung just for him.

“Okay,” Bonnie looked at him oddly, “What about him?”

Bubba fidgeted awkwardly, unable to force the next words out of his mouth.  He felt himself blush for even thinking it. “I think,” he mumbled, “I have feelings for him.” He flinched when the words made it out, expecting a huge backlash.

Not the bored stare that he received.

“Wait, you simply think?” Bonnie asked, perplexed, “That’s all this really is? You haven’t already had intercourse with him or anything?”

“What? No,” Bubba shook his head frantically, “Of course not. He’s a guy. Besides, I’m dating Fionna, remember?”

“In all honesty, yes, I have forgotten,” she informed him evenly, “And does his gender really matter? It’s just a single chromosome that we seem to base the norms of society upon.” She smiled at his baffled expression, “As long as you’re happy, I’ll support your decision. Even if it is to dump a girl that didn’t deserve you in the first place.”

“Thank you, Bonnie,” Bubba stood and hugged his best friend, “And it isn’t that she doesn’t deserve me. We’re just not meant for each other.”

“And you and Marshall are?”

Bubba smiled though he felt himself blush, “Maybe. I think I want to give him a chance. However...” He trailed off, frowning.

“However,” Bonnie prompted him to continue.

“How do I break up with Fionna?”

“Text,” was Bonnie’s immediate response.

Bubba couldn’t believe his ears for a second, “Text?”

Bonnie nodded, “She broke up with you through text, didn’t she? It’ll be fine. Just text her that you don’t think it’s working out and you’re moving on.”

“That’s terrible,” Bubba cried, “I can’t break up with her through text.”

“It was terrible,” she agreed, “It was terrible when Fionna did it and it’ll be karma when you do it.”

“I’m not looking to get revenge,” Bubba insisted, “I just want to be happy and Marshall makes me happy. He makes me laugh and feel important. I still love Fionna but not in the same way as before.”

Bonnie inspected his face for a hint of uncertainty but found Bubba’s blue eyes shining brighter than ever before. “I really didn’t like Marshall when I met him,” she admitted.

“Neither did I,” Bubba laughed, “But he grows on you, doesn’t he?”

“Not as much as he grew on you,” Bonnie grinned.

Bubba blushed and laughed. A huge weight fell off his shoulder now that he made his decision. He would break up with Fionna and then give his own love confession.

* * *

“Gummy bear,” Marshall whined, “What are we doing here?” They were standing in a deserted park, down the street from Bubba’s apartment.

Marshall had to pat himself on the back for his ability to act normal. After the night at the pub, he didn’t think he could do it but he managed though now he slept on the couch instead of Bubba’s bed. He figured that Bubba would avoid him, like he ended up doing, so he was shocked when his pink gummy bear invited him out. He was suspicious of Bubba’s sudden change in attitude but as long as Bubba kept on smiling brighter than the summer sun, he wouldn’t dare say anything.

“Patience, Marshy,” Bubba chided with a grin.

Marshall would have hated the nickname if anyone else had said it but it sounded so sweet on Bubba’s tongue.

“Oh, I’m Marshy now?” Marshall teased. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were flirting with me.”

He was not expecting Bubba to grin, even as he blushed cutely. “Well I’m not.”

“Yes, you are,” Marshall’s own grin widened as he said in disbelief, “You’re flirting with me, cutey bear.”

“You’re imagining it,” Bubba insisted.

“Trust me, I’ve imagined it,” Marshall moved closer, daring to break into Bubba’s personal space for the first time in days, “This is definitely not my imagination.”

“Marshall,” complained Bubba. The butterflies in his stomach stirred as Marshall’s eyes flashed passionate red.

“You like me, don’t you?” Marshall couldn’t quell the hope that was kindling in his chest. “You’re not going to push me away though you probably should. I mean, I’m a vampire. I’m not exactly the best candidate.”

They didn’t notice the small white nissan pull up.

Bubba stared up at his blood red eyes and agreed, “I probably should.”

They didn’t hear the car door open or close.

“But I won’t.”

They didn’t see Fionna approaching but when they finally gave in to their inner desires and kissed, they did hear Fionna shout “Bubba” in shock and disbelief. That was kind of hard to miss.

“Fionna,” Bubba stumbled away from Marshall, red from embarrassment.

Marshall, on the other hand, was seething quietly and sealing his blood red eyes shut. He finally had Bubba in his arms and a single word from her blew it. Unfortunately, some of his morals came back to him after spending time with Bubba so murder didn’t come as easily because if it did, he would have ceased her infernal breathing.

“Bubba, what’s going on?” Fionna asked, kind of freaking out. Her boyfriend was kissing another guy and looked more embarrassed than ashamed.

Okay, so where was the speech Bubba had been repeating to himself for hours on end? He didn’t know. Marshall had blown every thought out of his mind as soon as their lips touched. He knew there was an apology in there though. “I’m sorry, Fionna, but I actually called you down here to break up with you.” Was that tactful? Maybe. Marshall’s lust filled gaze was telling him that it was the right way to go. “I kind of found someone else.”

Proudly, Marshall wrapped his arms around Bubba’s waist and nuzzled his silky hair.

“Wait, so you’re gay?” she directed the question at both of them, struggling to decide which was more unbelievable.

Marshall rolled his eyes at the juvenile question, “We like to call it ‘love’ but sure, go ahead and put labels on it.”

“No, I just,” she trailed off, still wide-eyed, “Wow. I guess I should have seen this coming. I need some time to process this.” She barely waved as she turned around and headed right back to her car. Seconds later, she was gone and Marshall was nuzzling and nipping at Bubba’s neck.

He commented, “That turned out pretty well.”

Bubba moaned, “Marshall, stop that.”

“No can do, Gummy Bear,” Marshall smirked, “I need to mark my property.”

 

 


End file.
